Our mission is to be the most exciting, innovative and accessible Festival of the arts this part of the world, and thus promote the cultural, economic and social projection of India as a global soft power. The high visibility of India as a diverse, dynamic, peaceful, multicultural, refined and tolerant nation will also serve to attract potential investors from around the world.

Through bilateral and multilateral activity primarily in art and culture, India is projected as a meeting place of ideas. We, at DIAF, believe that aesthetics are never compartmentalized by forms or controlled by countries. Creativity is a notion constantly in search of new contents and forms. DIAF looks forward to inviting art projects from other parts of the world and opening new avenues for explorations of different approaches to the development and creation of artistic works. It also believes in reviving and re-projecting many ancient traditional art forms of India and the sub-continent thereby creating newer audiences and opportunities for continuation of intangible heritage.

In this sense the festival committee has taken the first step towards offering a new and unique model that is non-judgmental of the art forms presented and non-bourgeois.

I am particularly happy to inform you that we have a rich artistic offering from various cultures at DIAF 2010. The international segment has 18 Artistic groups from as many countries participating in this years’ Festival.

Some are cutting edge performances that are at the forward tip of the curve of creativity. I mention Alvin Sputnik’s Adventures from Australia, playing multiple shows, Tales Of the Body from Spain, a Butoh performance, Edgelogue-a festival of e-creativity, Ether – a much acclaimed contemporary dance group from Korea, a live literature, multi-media performance from Denmark, a one –man play from New York to mention a few.

Of special interest are collaborative music performances with Indian artistes by many international groups from Countries such as the U.K (performing with Mandolin U.Srinivas), Mexico (performing with Rajendra Prasanna and others), Brazil ( performing with Shubendra Rao and others),Austria ( performing with Ranajit SenGupta and others),Shivanova (collaborating with the Prasiddha Repertory in dance), Tetrafide percussion from Australia, Voices , Flutes and Percussion from India with artistes from Europe and Ukraine .

DIAF 2010 has stars of Indian Music and dance like Pt. Bhajan Sopori, Gundecha brothers, Pt. Madhup Mudgal, Kamal Sabri ,Priya sisters, Swapna Sundari, Madhavi Mudgal, Bijayoni Satpathy, Prathibha Prahlad’s Prasiddha Repertory, Kathak Kendra Repertory,Nartaki Natraj and several others. In addition are well-known musicians Suma Sudhindra, Sudha Raghuraman and Mita Pandit, Kumud Dewan and others.

Extraordinary young artistes like Pushkar Lele, Pravin Ghokindi, Rajat Prasanna and others as well as talented and creatively different productions from well-known young choreographers like Santosh Nair, Madhu Natraj, Vikram Iyengar, Sudarshan Chakraborty, Satanarayana Raju, Parul Shah, Sangeeta Sharma will be showcased in the Choreography segment.

The biggest draws of the Festival – star sufi artistes like Jaspinder Narula, Mohammed Ahmed Warsi Qawwals, Nizami brothers, Bharkat Sidhu, dervish dancers from Egypt are all there to excite the audience.

For those wanting music for healing, there is Bhakti Sangeet by Nandini Bhattacharya and Suman Devgan. The youngsters can look forward to gigs and rock and fusion bands like Parikrama, Advaita, Jasleen Royal, Groove Adda amongst others.

The Film Festival segment has an extraordinary array of films from kids films –made by children (ages 4 -12), films for children, films on extraordinary artistes from various Countries, award-winning Panaroma Films , sports Films and country-specific acclaimed films from Taiwan.

The visual arts is equally engaging with many collaborative exhibitions showcasing Indian and foreign artists.

All this at no cost – for we want you to come and enjoy and understand and contemplate. Art is the only equalising element in society- it engages, it inspires, it helps sensitize, and forms better individuals and thereby a better Nation.

– Prathibha Prahlad